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Tom DeLay Tries to 'Beat the Press' in Texas
Supporters of Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Texas) claim a poll released last week by the Houston Chronicle reveals the 11-term congressman faces two challengers in his battle for a 12th term in the U.S. House of Representatives – former Rep. Nick Lampson, his likely opponent in the general election; and, perhaps, the Houston Chronicle itself.
In a telephone survey conducted January 10 through 12, the Chronicle allowed Democratic primary voters to weigh-in on the Republican primary. Of those surveyed, only 21 percent said they would vote for DeLay in the Republican primary.
Story Continues Below DeLay supporters say the results are skewed by the error.
Shannon Flaherty, a spokeswoman for DeLay, says the poll was not intended to gauge DeLay’s support in the district.
"Any media poll,” Flaherty told NewsMax, "that’s asking Democrats who they’re supporting in the Republican primary is either poorly composed or maliciously biased.”
"[The Chronicle] clearly had an agenda of its own,” Flaherty continued. "To use a faulty design that would artificially lower DeLay’s primary poll numbers and raise their chances of doing what they’ve been attempting for years – to drive Tom DeLay out of office.”
Despite rhetoric over the accuracy of the numbers for the primary election, the poll also revealed problems for DeLay.
Nearly 60 percent of those surveyed said they held a somewhat or very unfavorable opinion of the former Majority Leader. Only 28 percent viewed him somewhat or very favorable.
Even worse, 47 percent of those polled said DeLay should withdraw as a candidate for the U.S. House; 40 percent said he should not withdraw.
Flaherty claimed the primary error renders the rest of the poll meaningless.
"They claim a plus-minus 4.1 percent sampling error,” she said. "But when you’re polling identified Democrats about a Republican primary, the error rate shoots to 100 percent. The only thing these numbers prove is the dwindling credibility of the Chronicle and its pollsters.”
The Chronicle has long been accused of liberal bias by conservatives and Republicans in the Houston area.
In 2002, the paper mistakenly published an internal memo outlining plans for a series of "objective” news stories intended to increase support for a controversial light rail system in the city and pressure opponents of the scheme – including DeLay. More recently, the paper has been chastised by Fox News Channel’s Bill O’Reilly for its frequent liberal bias.
Editor's note:
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